


Give Me Love Like Never Before

by lene1991



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Fluff, Hybrid Louis, Implied/Referenced Neglect, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-19
Updated: 2017-07-19
Packaged: 2018-12-04 05:10:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11548146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lene1991/pseuds/lene1991
Summary: Harry finds hybrid Louis on his way home and takes him in. After several abusive owners, Louis has to get used to living with Harry while also finding himself. While Harry has to get used to caring for a hybrid that is fully dependent on him.





	Give Me Love Like Never Before

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> This is the start of a fic that's been sitting on my hard drive for a while now. It's just something I wrote for myself, so it doesn't really have a plot to it.
> 
> However, there are a few warnings for you. There's one part, right at the end of the fic, where an abusive situation is explicitly described. Of course, not between H and L, and not involving L in any way. But it might still be unpleasant and triggering for some.
> 
> Furthermore, I am planning on continuing this at some point. This story will depict a non-sexual relationship between H and L, with some de-aging/regression on Louis' part.
> 
> Seeing as I usually have trouble thinking of new ideas, I would greatly appreciate it if you could share any ideas you might have for this story.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

The cold wind was biting at the exposed skin of Harry’s face. He tugged his scarf higher around his face in a futile attempt at fighting off the cold. He buried his gloved hands deeper in his coat pockets, which caused him to walk even more hunched over. He decided to take the shortcut through the park on a whim. Normally Harry didn’t like walking through the park when it was dark outside, but his desire to get out of this blizzard was overwhelming his slight fear of scary predators hiding in dark bushes. 

When a small sound came from said bushes, it startled Harry to the point of tripping over his own feet. He took a few deep breaths to calm down his racing heart, after which he inconspicuously looked around him to check if someone had seen his little stumble. Again, Harry was startled by a pained sound coming from the bushes, but this time he was alert enough to identify the sound as coming from an animal or child. Not that the sounds made by children and animals could be easily compared, it was more the lack of any sign of language that gave Harry this idea

He was not quite sure what to do. One the one hand, he _really_ wanted to keep on walking and pretend he didn’t hear anything. On the other hand, he felt a deep need to help whatever creature would make such a noise. Taking a deep breath, he crouched down next to the bush. ‘Hello? Is anybody there?’ Another desperate sound, followed by the bush moving. Harry moved the bush away and revealed a small crouching form. The form looked like a small human boy, his knees were drawn up to his chest, hiding his face. 

‘Hey, little guy, are you okay?’ Harry reached out to touch the boy’s shoulder, which made him flinch away and reveal his face. Which, oaky. Maybe not a human boy, but a hybrid boy. A hybrid boy with a bruised face. ‘Sweetheart, where is your owner?’ The boy shook his head, his innocent looking, big, blue eyes filling up with tears. Harry felt a pull on his heartstrings. What had happened to this beautiful creature? Who would hurt him in such a way?  ‘Have you lost your owner? Do you have your booklet with you? We can look for them together.’ The tears spilled out of the boy’s eyes while he pulled a wet and torn booklet from under the thin shirt he was wearing. Just looking at the blue booklet seemed to make him more despaired and crushed. He handed the booklet to Harry and tucked his face back between his knees, sobbing.   

Harry opened the booklet that held all the information about the hybrid in front of him, like a human passport. Only with the additional information about his owner. He skimmed over the page which held his name ( _Louis_ ), his gender ( _Male – Cat Hybrid_ ) to his birth year (the poor thing was only four years old). Harry opened the booklet on the pages with the owner information, he immediately saw that the most recent owner information was violently crossed out. Harry was hesitant to ask the hybrid anything, but he needed to know what course of action to take. ‘Did you cross it out, honey?’ Harry was right in his apprehension, Louis only started crying harder. Harry’s heart wept seeing the little hybrid so broken. He threw all caution to the wind and picked the hybrid up despite its struggles.  Walking back into the city center without looking back once. 

Harry tried to soothe the crying and shaking hybrid he held in his arms. ‘It’s going to be okay, we will figure this out. We will go to the city hall first, yeah? See what is going on, and how we can get you home.’ Louis had calmed down considerably after Harry first started talking, that calm disappeared as Louis started squirming in his arms again at the end of his little speech. ‘You don’t want to find your owner?’ Louis shook his head wildly. ‘That’s okay, we’ll still go to the city hall, see if we can arrange something.’

Fortunately, the city hall was deserted by this time of day, a shady mix between late-afternoon and early-evening in the middle of a dreary and wet, cold month. Louis was still hiding his face in Harry’s neck, Harry no longer tried to coax him out of his hiding instead rocking him to calm him down. He walked up to the ticket machine, selecting a ticket for the hybrid administration. Harry sat down on one of the chairs in the waiting area, placing Louis on his lap and rocking him in hopes of calming him down. Eventually, the hybrid came out of hiding and looked at Harry with sad, confused eyes. 

‘Hi, there little one. I’m Harry.’ The look in Louis’ eyes turned curious, one of his hands coming up to Harry’s face. He carefully touched his index fingers to Harry’s face, making him smile so his dimples appeared. Louis’ eyes widened and the smallest of smiles appeared on his face. 

A ding sounded, making Harry look at the screen with the numbers and corresponding desks, his and Louis’ number was up. ‘Come on, bug, let’s go.’ He tried putting Louis down but he clung on to Harry with his arms and legs. ‘Okay, okay. I’m not putting you down okay, calm down.’ He hauled Louis over to the desk, thankful that the lady behind the counter was smiling fondly at them. Harry pried the booklet out of Louis’ hand and gave it to the civil servant. 

‘Hi, I found Louis here in the park. He had his booklet with him, but his latest owner crossed out his name. Could you please check the system, see if his owner’s address is in there?’ Louis clawed his fingers in Harry’s shoulders, probably punishing him for his words. The clerk’s expression had turned sour, as if a lost hybrid made her day take a turn for the worse. She seemed to put some information into her computer, reluctantly. Her frown deepened at the results and looked at them apologetically. ‘There seems to be a … slight problem.’ Harry could feel Louis go rigid in his arms. Harry tried to relax him by rubbing one hand over his back while keeping his other hand under his bum. ‘His previous owner removed Louis from his passport. Louis no longer has an owner.’ Harry felt Louis’ tears against his neck. He could only imagine how Louis would be feeling, the person that was supposed to care for him and love him most in the world abandoned him. Harry felt for the poor hybrid in his arms. ‘What will happen to him?’ The civil servant looked uncomfortable, like Harry was being rude by forcing her to say the next part. ‘Well, if he has no owner…he will need to go to a shel-‘ 

‘No!’ The eyebrows of the lady disappeared behind her fringe. Apparently, Harry was being very rude. Louis was limp in his arms, it felt to Harry as if he had given up. Harry wondered what else Louis had been put through. ‘Can you see how many other owners Louis had before the last one?’ The lady seemed to scroll through a long list. ‘The last one seemed to be owner number eight.’ Harry’s heart constricted and he couldn’t breathe for a long minute, the hand stroking Louis’ back shot to the back of the hybrid’s head as if protecting him from the cruel words. 

‘But… he’s only four years old?’ The lady shot him a desperate look that Harry thought she saw mirrored in his own eyes. In a desperate attempt to protect Louis, Harry almost screamed at the lady. ‘I will adopt him! Can I do that?’ The lady seemed to perk up at that, like she was reborn. Louis went rigid again, so Harry turned to him. ‘Is that okay, Lou? Do you want that?’ Louis was nodding into his neck, pushing his face out of Harry’s neck to meet his eyes. There was a small flicker of hope in his eyes, but there was sadness too and mistrust. But Harry couldn’t find it in himself to be offended, not if he was to be owner number nine. That only made him want to cry. 

The clerk cleared her throat, ‘I’m going to need your passport. I will add him to your passport, and add you to his record.’ Harry tried handing her his passport with one hand without dropping Louis, but his arms were growing sore. ‘I’m sorry, bug, I’m going to have to put you down for a while or I’ll drop you. Just for a bit.’ He put Louis down on the ground, who refused to stand so ended up sitting on the floor, looking up at Harry with sad, blue eyes. Louis wrapped both his hands around Harry’s right ankle, trying to prevent him from leaving. Harry’s heart broke all over again, he slipped his hands in Louis’ hair to ensure him that he wasn’t leaving. The lady continued on with her story, as if saying it faster ensured that nobody would change their minds. ‘It will take thirty days for the adoption to be legal, any party is allowed to back out of the agreement at any point during these thirty days. After that, the adoption becomes permanent, you will receive a new passport, and he will be legally yours. Giving him up after those thirty days will result in a fine up to ten thousand pounds.’ Harry’s poor heart stopped again as he looked down at Louis, Louis who wouldn’t meet his eyes and was staring at his hands on Harry’s ankle. Realization hit Harry that _eight_ people would have had to pay ten thousand pounds to get rid of Louis. Harry hoped Louis didn’t understand that implication. ‘As you are adopting him before he goes to a shelter, you will receive welfare each month for the first two years, also vaccinations and health checks will be compensated. A list of all necessary vaccinations will be included in his booklet. A speedy check-up with a hybrid doctor is advisable, to ensure there are no illnesses, as far as I can see, his last check-up was a year and a half ago. Will you need a list of doctors in the area?’ 

Harry’s mind was reeling from all the information, he had never been opposed to adopting a hybrid, but he never knew how scarily easy it was to adopt one. ‘Aren’t you going to check if I’m a suited candidate? You’re just going to give him to me?’ The lady seemed irritated that her flawless and smooth adoption was being delayed. ‘Normally, no, we do not check possible homes. There are not nearly enough available homes, we cannot really be picky.’ Harry looked down at Louis and saw the bruises smattered on his face. ‘You should be,’ he whispered, reminding himself of the broken state in which he found Louis. The lady slid a stack of papers across the counter, ignoring Harry’s last statement. ‘If you could please sign here,’ she pointed at the bottom of the last page, which she put on top of the stack. ‘It is all pretty standard, an adoption contract that will become legal once a judge signs it in thirty days. If you take no action after today, the adoption will be finalised automatically and you will receive a letter saying you can pick up your new passport. Harry signed the papers she handed him and gave them back to her. ‘You will receive the first payment on your bank account the day the adoption becomes final. Any more questions?’ She ended with a cheery smile, another hybrid housed, job well-done. Harry kind of not wanted to think about the thousands and thousands of hybrids wandering the streets and trying to survive in shelters. 

Harry gathered Louis back up in his arms and thanked the clerk. He shoved his copy of the adoption papers in his bag and put Louis on one hip, trying to look the hybrid in the eye as much as he would allow. He only started speaking to him when he left city hall. ‘We’re going to a doctor now, he’s a friend of mine and really nice. He’ll check you out, see if you’re all healthy, okay?’ Louis looked scared but still nodded, Harry did not understand what had happened for eight people to abandon a hybrid that tried so hard. Harry decided to walk across the market on their way to the doctor’s. He hoped Louis would be distracted by all the things he would see and maybe not be so scared. Suddenly, he felt Louis’ tummy rumble against his side, Louis flushed pink and looked down in embarrassment. ‘Let’s get you something to eat. What do you like, bug?’ Louis shrugged his shoulders, still not looking up. The small movement combined with the bruises made him look extra small and fragile. Harry only now noticed how skinny Louis was, there was an unhealthy, sunken look to his cheekbones. Harry felt the need to stuff the boy with fat and carbs, but decided that fruit and vegetables would be a healthier alternative for fattening him up. He stopped at a stall that sold summer fruit even though it was approaching winter. Louis looked at all the fruit hungrily, but refused to pick out what he liked even though his gaze was fixed on the fat, juicy, purple cherries. ‘Lou, I need you to tell me what you like. I want to give you what you want, but I cannot read your mind. Could you point out the things you like?’ The man behind the stall looked on impatiently. Louis removed one of his arms from around Harry’s neck and was about to point out the cherries when he was rudely interrupted. ‘Are you really waiting on your cat to choose what you’re gonna buy?’ Louis withdrew his arm as if he was being burned and clutched it to his chest. The man let out a deep sigh. 

Harry looked at the man with a death glare, hoping that he would feel the burning loathing in his gaze. ‘Louis, honey, pick out what you would like, please.’ He spoke with a tight voice, trying very hard not to lose his temper. The man looked at him irritably, but Harry only felt the need to drag out their visit. Louis looked between the salesman and Harry and tried to figure out what to do. Slowly but surely he pointed at the cherries. ‘We’ll take a kilo of those, please.’ The man didn’t seem fazed at all as he put cherries in a bag. Harry turned his attention back to Louis, who seemed cold despite the coat he was wearing. Harry picked his beanie off of his own head and tried to put it on Louis’ with one hand. ‘I’m going to put you down for a bit, will make it easier to put the hat on you. Can you try to stand up for a bit?’ Louis nodded hesitantly while looking at the ground, as if he wasn’t sure he wanted to try standing on the cold concrete. Harry put him down slowly, catching him against his legs when he wobbled. Louis was small, even for his age, standing up tall he barely came up to Harry’s mid-thigh. Harry carefully placed the beanie on Louis’ head, minding his ears and awkwardly tucking them into the beanie. 

Harry’s attention was drawn back to the salesman when he tossed the cherries at them. Harry tried to smile as politely as he could muster, but he was certain that there was a scowl on his face when he paid. 

‘Thanks’, he murmured, handing the cherries to Louis and picking him back up. Louis held the cherries but didn’t make a move to eat any. So, Harry picked one of the cherries out of the bag and fed it to Louis. ‘Please eat. You can spit out the pits in the bushes, or just back in the bag. I always used to do that when I was little.’ Louis looked hesitant as he chewed the cherry and spit the pit in the bag. However, as he smacked his lips, his face broke out in a huge grin. 

‘That’s good, isn’t it?’ Louis nodded his head fervently. ‘You want another one?’ Louis nodded again, albeit more hesitantly. Harry handed him another cherry, ‘It’s okay, they’re yours. Just take however many you want, okay?’ Louis looked at him curiously, like he was trying to figure out if Harry was being sincere. Harry wondered what happened with Louis’ previous owners, he would probably never know the full story. He figured he didn´t really want to know, it must have been bad. He could tell Louis acted younger than he was. It was quite common with abused hybrids to regress. Young hybrids didn´t have the mental and verbal capacity to stand up to their abusers, so they regressed into themselves in order to survive. 

They arrived at the doctor’s when Louis was finally secure enough to take a cherry himself, keeping his eyes on Harry, to gauge his reaction. Harry tried to praise him excessively, hoping that it would help make Louis more comfortable around him. The lady behind the reception desk did a double take when she recognized Harry. 

‘Harry? Honey, what are you doing here?’ she came out from behind her desk, approaching Harry and Louis. Louis looked at the lady warily, flinching when she reached out to him. He hid his face in Harry’s neck, clutching the bag of cherries to his chest. 

‘Louis, this is Lou, she’s a friend of mine. Will you say hello to her?’ Louis peeked out of his hiding place, timidly waving at Lou. ‘God job, honey.’ Louis rested his head on Harry´s shoulder again, this time facing the outside world. Harry placed one of his hands on the back of Louis’ head, holding him closer to himself. 

‘Does Tom have time to see us today? I just adopted Louis and want to make sure he is healthy. He also needs his shots.’ Lou looked from Harry to Louis and back again, a frown forming on her face. 

‘I’ll go ask him right now, go take a seat I’ll be with you shortly.’ Harry took Louis to the waiting area and took a seat as far from the other patients as possible. He placed Louis on his lap with his back to the others. Louis was distracted form his cherries, looking around himself with wide eyes. Harry picked one of the cherries from the bag and pressed it to Louis’ lips, who took it without taking his attention from the dog hybrid that just walked in. Louis spit the pit in the bag when Harry held it under his mouth, accepting the next one when it was pressed to his lips. 

Lou came out off one of the treatment rooms, walking over to Harry and Louis. ‘Tom will be able to see you in half an hour, is that okay?’ Harry nodded at once. 

‘Thanks so much that is no problem. There is one… could I maybe get something to drink for Louis? I don’t know when he last drank something.’ 

Lou squatted to Louis’ height. ‘Do you like tea, darling?’ Louis looked at Harry then back at Lou and nodded. ‘Would you like sugar in it?’ a nod, ‘Milk?’ another nod. Lou smiled brightly at Louis. ‘Coming right up, darling.’ Louis looked back at Harry, at his cherries, all around him and back at Harry with confusion that was bordering on panic. He couldn’t make sense of all that was happening and it clearly all became too much. 

‘It’s okay, darling.´ Harry plucked the beanie from Louis’ head and scratched between the ears on Louis head, Louis’ eyes rolling to the back of his head and his eyelids falling closed. ‘You like that, baby?’ Instead of replying, Louis let out a loud purr. ‘Everything is going to be okay, I’m going to take care of you. Don’t you worry, you’ll stay with me and I’ll get you everything you need.’ Louis didn’t seem to be listening anymore, his purr only growing louder, his hands slacked around the bag of cherries. Harry took it from him to prevent it from falling. Louis cuddled closer into Harry, tucking his face between his neck and shoulder, one of his hands fisted in Harry’s shirt. Louis’ breathing evened out and he fell asleep after a few minutes. Harry kept petting at Louis’ ears, held him close with his other arm. He looked over the hybrid’s bruised face. His stomach turning at the idea of someone hurting the innocent creature he held in his arms. 

Lou returned with the tea and put it next to Harry on a free chair, neither Harry nor Louis noticed her. Harry was captivated by the beautiful boy in his lap, bruises coming in and out of focus. He carded his fingers through the blood matted hair on Louis´ head. He already felt so fond of the little hybrid. 

Louis scrunched up his nose in his sleep, pulling Harry´s attention to his face. It looked like Louis spent quite some time on the streets, his hair was greasy and matted with blood, he had dirt all over his face and his clothes had tears in them. The fact that Louis´ clothes smelled of garbage didn’t prevent Harry from holding him close, instead he held him impossibly closer, trying to protect him from the evils of the outside world as much as possible. 

The dog hybrid on the other side of the waiting room let out a load bark, causing Louis to startle awake. Harry held him close and shushed him, handing Louis his tea. Louis took the cup hesitantly, first smelling the liquid and then carefully sticking his tongue in his tea. Just like when he tasted the cherries the first time, his face lit up. He kept lapping at the tea with his tongue, his tail swishing behind him and sweeping across the floor. Harry couldn’t keep a fond smile off his face watching Louis. He dragged his fingers up and down Louis’ back, revelling in the purrs Louis let out. Soon enough, Louis couldn’t reach the liquid with his tongue anymore. He started releasing little whines, the first sounds Harry heard him make. 

‘Want me to help?’ Louis looked at Harry, he unconsciously held the cup closer to his chest. It looked like he was trying to assess if Harry was to be trusted with his tea. He must have decided that Harry was, he hesitantly handed the cup over to him. Harry took the cup and immediately held it to Louis’ lips. Louis looked frightened, like he wasn’t sure he made the right decision. Like Harry might try to hurt him. Harry carefully tilted the cup until the liquid hit Louis’ lips. Louis opened his mouth a bit so he could drink. After the first few hesitant sips, Louis started drinking heartily, pushing the cup up when he thought Harry wasn’t offering him enough. Soon Louis started purring again, closing his eyes and drinking as fast as he could. 

‘Calm down, honey. No one is taking it from you.’ Louis didn’t seem to listen. Drinking as fast as he could until he drained the cup empty. He released the cup after he finished, slumping against Harry. Harry was astonished with how fast Louis seemed to have started to trust him. Apparently feeding him was one way to gain his trust. Which made Harry wonder how many of his previous owners neglected to feed him. Harry handed Louis the bag of cherries again, smiling fondly when Louis grabbed a few immediately. Louis tried to stuff three cherries in his mouth at once, stems sticking out. 

‘No, Lou, don’t do that. Watch out, you’re going to choke yourself.’ Harry held his hand under Louis’ mouth. ‘Spit some out, you can eat them later. Just, one at a time please.’ Louis looked at Harry innocently, cheeks rounded out with cherries. He looked at Harry for a long time before, reluctantly, letting a few fall out of his mouth and into Harry’s hand. He chewed the remaining cherry slowly, still looking Harry in the eye when he spit out the pit in Harry’s hand and snatched a new cherry from Harry’s hand. It seemed like he was daring Harry to take them from him, or like he was waiting for Harry to show him that he was not to be trusted. 

Harry figured that only time would show Louis that he was different than all his previous owners. He would have to show Louis he could be trusted. Louis traded the last cherry on Harry’s hand with another pit, grabbing another handful of cherries from the bag and laying them out on Harry’s hand. Harry wasn’t quite sure about the system Louis had going, but Louis seemed quite content with his little trading game. Louis kept looking at Harry, checking if what he was doing was still okay. Like he was testing how far he could go. Harry wondered if Louis was trying to see if Harry would get angry with him. Louis´ bruised face only confirmed the need for such an attitude. Louis´ life couldn’t have been anything but rough up until today, and Harry was determined to change that. He would show Louis the wonders of the world and he would teach him what it really meant to be alive. 

Tom came out off one of the treatment rooms and headed for Harry and Louis. ´Harry, mate, what are you doing here?’ Louis clung to Harry again, hiding his face from Tom’s view in Harry’s neck. Harry stood up with Louis in his arms, trying to hold on to everything at once. He shifted to hold Louis up with one arm to shake Tom’s hand with the one not holding Louis’ discarded pits. 

‘Thank you so much that you agreed to see us on such short notice. I found Louis in the park a few hours ago, so I went to City Hall and the lady was talking about shelters and about how he already had eight previous owners. So, I adopted him. But I need to know if he’s healthy first, if he maybe needs some extra care. I don’t know anything about taking care of a hybrid, and I don’t want to accidently hurt him.’ They walked into a large examination room, in the middle of the room stood a big examination table. Tom gestured to the table. 

‘If you could just set him down there.’ Harry tried moving Louis to the table. But he refused to let go. ‘Darling, it’s okay. I’m not going anywhere, I’m just setting you on the table so Tom can have a better look. You can hold my hand the entire time if you’d like.’ Louis had tears in his eyes but still released his death grip around Harry’s neck. Harry stood closer to Louis and put one arm around him, tucking him into his side. ‘Good job, honey. We can go home when we’re done here, would you like that?’ Louis nodded against his chest, tears falling down his cheeks. Tom came to stand next to the table, addressing Louis. 

‘Do you have your booklet with you?’ Louis looked at Harry expectantly, gesturing towards his backpack. ‘Oh, yes! Of course, I took it from you when we were at City Hall. Sorry.’ Harry dug around his backpack for the booklet and handed it over to Tom. ‘The lady behind the desk at City Hall said he’d at least need his shots, but I also think that maybe he regressed a little?’ Louis didn’t seem too concerned with the conversation poking at Harry to get his cherries back. He made a happy, content sound when he got his bag back, taking a cherry in each hand and munching happily. His little smile in stark contrast to the tears still streaming down his face.  

Tom looked at Louis for a bit, before opening his booklet and flipping through the pages. ‘I would certainly say that he regressed, and quite a bit as far as I can tell. Has he spoken to you at all?’ Harry shook his head. ‘Considering his visible injuries, Louis has been hurt a lot. Eight owners are a lot, that’s going to leave a mark. So, you should be prepared for further regression, when he deems the situation he is in as safe. Within a few weeks of him staying with you, he will have learned to trust you and he will feel safe around you. That’s when he will start to cope with stuff that happened to him in the past. Which can lead to him becoming overwhelmed with his emotions and feelings and regressing. He will stop listening to the meaning of your words, he will stop feeding himself, sometimes they even stop being potty-trained. After a while he will age again, when he has gotten enough time to work through everything that happened to him, so you shouldn’t be alarmed. But it is always good to prepare yourself for that. It’s like adopting a small child, but it will all be worth it when they trust you and open up to you, you’ll see.’ Tom reached into Louis’ hair to scratch at his ears whilst he was distracted by his fruit. Smiling at the sound Louis made, a startled squeak mixed with a satisfied purr. ‘Could you lift your shirt for me, Louis? Let me look at your tummy for a bit?’ Louis pretended not to be listening, taking another cherry from the bag. Harry tried taking the bag from him. 

‘It’s okay, honey. Could you take off your shirt for the doctor?’ Louis shook his head, denying one of Harry’s request for the first time. ‘Does it hurt?’ Louis nodded his head in confirmation, tugging his shirt down. ‘If you let Tom have a look, he can make it better. That’s why he’s a doctor. He won’t hurt you, nobody will ever hurt you, I’ll make sure of that, I promise.’ Louis looked at Harry with big tear-filled eyes that communicated his despair and anxiety. Eventually, he gave Harry the benefit of the doubt again and put the cherries beside him. He didn’t make any move to take his shirt off himself, but it was custom for hybrids to get dressed and undressed by their owner. He raised his arms halfway when Harry moved to remove his shirt. 

Tom stepped up next to Harry, taking Louis’ hands in his. ‘Is this as high as you can lift them without it hurting?’ Louis seemed to have completely surrendered himself to his fate, co-operating immediately, nodding his head. Harry managed to free Louis of his shit, discarding the dirty garment on the floor. He knew that Lou and Tom had some spare clothes lying around, he would ask for some of those for Louis. He refused to ever dress Louis in such dirty clothes. He would almost rather have him walking around naked. 

Louis’ revealed torso was marred with bruises, scars and cuts, some still bleeding. Harry forced himself to pay careful attention as Tom cleaned and bandaged most of them. Leaving some uncovered so he could stich Louis up. Louis seemed to have closed himself off from the situation, crying silent tears. Harry moved to stand behind Louis, hugging him from behind without hindering Tom. Louis seemed grateful of Harry’s reassurance, clutching onto his forearm with both his hands. When Tom was done with Louis chest and back he asked Louis to stand and remove his pants. 

Louis seemed to go into a panic, he started shaking violently and made whimpering sounds. He jerked away from Harry’s touch when he tried to calm Louis down. ‘Louis, has anyone ever asked you to take off your pants so they could hurt you?’ Tom was crouched down across from Louis, not trying to touch him at all but looking him straight in the eye. Louis wrapped his arms around himself and nodded at the floor. ‘Can you tell us where they hurt you?’ Louis looked ashamed, his cheeks turned a bright red colour and tears once again slipped past his eyes. Harry hated seeing him so broken. He vowed to himself to hunt down each and every bastard that ever hurt Louis and to act out his revenge. Louis made a quick gesture towards his bum, hiding his face behind his hands immediately after. Harry crouched down next to Louis, pulling him into a hug. 

‘There is nothing you should be ashamed of, honey. They were doing the wrong thing, not you. They should have never touched you there. I promise you something like that will never happen again.’ Louis wrapped his arms around Harry’s neck and held on tight. He made no move to stop Harry when he reached to unbutton Louis’ pants. 

‘You tell me when you’re uncomfortable with something, okay? We’re trying to help you, but if you don’t want something you have to let me know. We never want to hurt you.’ Louis nodded his head again and stepped out of his trousers one leg at a time. Tom stepped up next to Harry and crouched down as well. 

‘I only want to make sure you’re not too hurt, that’s all.’ He carefully examined Louis’s legs, touching some of his bruises but steering clear from the regions near his pants. Louis’ tail wound itself around his legs, shielding his legs from view. 

‘Lou, darling, Tom cannot see with your tail in the way. Could you move it for us?’ Harry held Louis closer to him running his hands over Louis’ back in an effort to stop him from shaking. Louis’ tail carefully loosened from his leg, wrapping around Harry’s middle instead. 

‘Good job, darling. Tom is almost finished, then you can put new trousers on, promise’. Tom quickly stitched a few wounds up and dressed them. 

‘All done. Would you like clean trousers, Louis?’ Louis nodded his head, not looking Tom in the eye. Tom stepped out of the room, leaving Harry and Louis on their own. Louis started sobbing the minute Tom left the room, clutching at Harry’s shoulders and trying to climb in his lap. Harry wrapped him up in his arms, supporting Louis with one hand under his bum and another splayed out over his back. 

‘You’re doing so well, honey. It’s okay, you’re safe now. No-one is going to hurt you ever again. I promise.’ Tom came back into the room and handed Harry some clean trousers and clean pants. He laid new socks, and a shirt on the treatment table. Harry handed the clean pants to Louis. 

‘You want to change into these? We can turn around for a bit, give you some privacy?’ Louis took the pants from Harry, after looking at them for a while he gave them back to Harry. First Harry thought that Louis didn’t want to change here, but then Louis slowly inched his own dirty pants lower. 

‘You want me to help?’ Louis nodded his head, gripping Harry’s shoulders again as Harry started taking Louis’ pants off. Harry shifted a bit so Louis was shielded from Tom’s gaze, Louis seemed to appreciate this gesture, helping Harry by lifting his feet out of his pants. Harry quickly slipped the new pants onto Louis’ body, carefully taking the tip of his soft tail and guiding it through the hole in the pants. Next, he took off Louis’ dirty socks and replaced them with the new ones. He immediately moved on to his trousers, rolling up one of the legs so Louis could step into it easily. 

‘We’ll give you a nice bath once we’re home, honey. But for now new clothes have to suffice. Are they warm enough?’ Louis looked at the jumper lying on the table and nodded his head. Tom came from behind Harry, Louis’ eyes growing large when he saw what was in his hands. He started struggling in Harry’s arms, trying to get away as fast as possible. Harry let go of him immediately, letting Louis put as much distance between them as he pleased and needed. 

‘It’s okay darling, those are just the vaccinations. It will sting for a bit, but they’re meant to help you. I don’t want you to get sick, and these will help with keeping you healthy.’ Louis was shaking his head violently, clearly working himself into a panic. 

‘Calm down, honey. No one is going to do anything without your permission, I won’t let them.’ That seemed to get Louis’ attention, he calmed down a bit and his breathing evened out. ‘Just take some deep breaths. We’ll skip them, if they make you uncomfortable.’ Louis looked between Harry and Tom, seemingly torn between taking the out Harry was offering and trusting on Harry’s judgement. 

Louis took a hesitant step forward. When Tom tried to approach Louis, Harry stopped him, wanting Louis to make the final decision. When Louis saw no-one was forcing him, he took another few steps towards Tom and Harry. 

‘You want to try? I’ll hold your hand if you’d like.’ Louis reached where Harry was still kneeling on the floor. He wrapped his arms around Harry’s neck and pressed himself as close to Harry as he could. Louis gave Tom a tiny nod and buried his face in Harry’s shirt. Harry pulled Louis further into him, wrapping his arms around him and holding him as close as he could. 

Tom came up behind Harry and grasped Louis’ arm, Harry could feel the tremors wracking through Louis’ small body. ‘It’s going to be okay, baby. You’re being so brave, you’re doing so well.’ Louis went rigid when Tom pricked his skin, but soon relaxed when the needle was retracted from his arm. 

‘All done. You can get dressed now, Louis. I’ll add you to our client list. I’d advise you to set another appointment in six weeks. Just to see how Louis is adjusting.’ Tom stood with his back to Louis and Harry to give them some privacy while Harry finished dressing Louis and wiped the tears from his cheeks. Harry handed Louis his cherries back and lifted him back up. He wanted to teach Louis that is was never wrong to seek physical closeness. 

‘Is there anything I can do to help Louis adjust? Like, maybe a book I can read?’ Tom grabbed a thick book from a display shelf. ‘I really like this book, it’s a textbook that teaches you about the psychology of hybrids, especially abused ones, and teaches you how to care for them.’

‘I’ll take that, thanks.’ Harry followed Tom out into the waiting room and to the reception desk. They made a follow-up appointment and Harry paid for the vaccinations and the book. Lou handed Harry a receipt and a small folder. ‘In here are some addresses that may come in handy. Some stores where you can buy clothes and some delivery services. It is advised to stay at home with a new hybrid for at least a week at first, to help him adjust. Having things delivered is just easiest.’ Louis was watching the people around him with tired eyes and his head resting on Harry’s shoulder, he seemed exhausted. Harry figured it was time for them to go home, take a bath and go to sleep. He thanked Lou and Tom and carried Louis outside. 

He walked home as fast as he could, the rocking motions of his steps and the eventful day tiring Louis out. He seemed to be nodding off, his head resting on Harry’s shoulder. Harry felt his lip curl up in a smile, he was already so attached to the little hybrid. He couldn’t imagine having to give him up. Even though Louis must have gone through hell to get where he was today, Harry was immensely grateful for them finding each other. He could not wait for the day that Louis would trust him completely. Harry reached his apartment and carefully extracted his keys from his pockets. He tried not to jostle Louis, but he still blinked his eyes open. 

‘Sorry, honey. We’re home. I’ll give you a bath and something to eat and then you can go to sleep.’ Harry unlocked the door and stepped inside his house. Louis seemed to be more awake now, lifting his head from Harry’s shoulder to look around the house. Harry put Louis down and propped him up against his legs to strip them both of their coats and hats. He bent down to untie Louis’ shoes and take them off. He kicked of his own shoes and picked Louis back up. Louis was shivering in his arms, even though Harry had left the heating on before he left for work. He decided to give him a bath before he fed him. Hoping it would warm him up. He carried Louis to the bathroom and sat him down on the closed toilet seat. He checked the temperature of the water before he drew a bath. 

Louis was quietly observing Harry, looking at him with confusion written all over his face. Harry could imagine being confused over having someone take care of you, after eight others probably failed or refused to do so. Harry checked the water again and poured a liberal amount of soap in it. When the water was up to a nice level for Louis to sit in, Harry turned to him. Louis seemed to get the hint because he got up on shaky legs. Leaning on Harry’s shoulders to keep standing. 

‘Is it okay if I take off your clothes? So you can get in the bath?’ Louis looked up from the floor in surprise. Harry figured no-one bothered to ask Louis’ opinion on things before. Louis nodded his head and helped Harry take off his clothes. He seemed to be less bothered to take off his pants as he was at the doctor’s. Harry helped Louis into the bath who purred when the warm water touched his skin. 

Louis slapped the water with a flat palm, startling when a splash of water hit him in the face. Harry couldn’t control a giggle from erupting. Wiping his thumb over Louis’ face to get the water out of his eyes. ‘Be careful, baby.’ Harry grabbed a cup from the side of the bath and filled it with water. He guided Louis’ head back, shielded his eyes with his hand and poured the water over Louis’ hair. Working his fingers through his dirty hair, trying to work the knots out. He poured a couple of more cups of water over Louis’ head. When he deemed his hair wet enough, he lathered it up with shampoo. Louis started purring again when Harry worked the shampoo through his hair. Leaning backwards when Harry made to wash out his hair. Harry didn’t have any of the special Hybrid shampoo lying around, so he washed Louis’ ears with a normal one. After he carefully rinsed out Louis’ hair, he grabbed a washcloth from the cupboard and lathered it up. 

Harry tried to start out carefully, taking one of Louis’ hands out of the water and cleaning it thoroughly with the cloth. He started out carefully, moving upwards and cleaning Louis’ entire arm. Louis was watching him intently again, this being the most thorough washing he ever received. After washing both his arms, Harry moved to washing Louis’ torso, careful of his wounds and bandages. He washed Louis’ feet next, revelling in the little giggles that escaped him when Harry washed between his toes. 

‘Are you ticklish?’ Harry moved the cloth over the sole of Louis’ foot making him jerk his entire leg out of the water. Harry would have to mop the floor afterwards, but it was all worth it when he saw the big smile on Louis’ face. He finished washing Louis and rinsed him off. Wrapping him in a big, fluffy towel when he got him out. 

He dressed Louis in the underwear he got from Tom and one of his own comfy sweaters. He didn’t want Louis to walk around in dirty clothes, but he had no other underwear that would accommodate Louis’ tail. He picked Louis up again and carried him to the kitchen, pointing out all the different rooms as they went. Louis rested his head on Harry’s shoulder again and hooked one arm over his shoulder. His eyes started to droop again. Harry figured that the rocking motions of his walking helped Louis sleeping. He tried to remember this fact for when Louis had trouble sleeping. 

Harry wondered whether Louis’ previous owners had known this, whether they’d cared. He brought one hand up to Louis’ head, scratching behind his ears. Louis nuzzled further into Harry’s neck, he released a sigh and started purring. Harry contemplated to just keep walking and put Louis to bed, but he really needed him to eat something substantial first. He kept lightly bouncing on his feet while he looked in his fridge. 

After he made both of them a sandwich he carefully shook Louis awake. Louis blinked his eyes open without lifting his head from Harry’s shoulder. Harry tried feeding him without waking him too much. After Louis finished his own sandwich and most of Harry’s, he refused the next bite Harry tried to feed him. Harry offered him a glass of milk which he drank quickly. He rested his head on Harry’s shoulder after he finished the milk, his cheeks a rosy pink. This seemed the best moment to put him to bed. So, Harry began walking laps around the living room until he was sure Louis was out. He put Louis to bed in the guest bedroom and left the door open. He figured it wouldn’t be pretty if Louis woke up in the middle of the night in a strange room with nowhere to go. 

Harry booted up his laptop while he made a cup of tea. He followed one of the links Lou gave him and was surprised to see that there were lists of items he might need that he could select and order from. He checked the size of clothes Louis wore and ordered him an entire wardrobe. He also ordered some toys he thought Louis might like. He moved on to the book Tom had advised him on and started reading the chapter about regression. 

He was well into his third chapter when he heard Louis start crying. He quickly abandoned his book and rushed to Louis’ room. Louis was sat up straight in the bed. The light shining in from the hallway illuminated his bruises and made them stand out from the rest of his face. He looked scared and vulnerable, there were tears streaming down his face as he was gasping for air. Harry crouched down beside the bed and placed his hand on Louis’ back. 

Louis seemed to be startled out of his fear, turning towards Harry and throwing himself in Harry’s arms. He clutched onto him tightly, like he was afraid Harry would disappear and he would be on his own again. Harry gripped onto Louis just as tightly, hoping to ensure him that he was not going anywhere. He could feel Louis’ tears soak through his shirt, the boy still shaking violently. Harry rubbed his hands over Louis’ back, shushing him gently while rocking him. 

Louis calmed down after a while, still shaking slightly and sobbing occasionally. ‘It’s okay, honey. It was just a bad dream, there is no need to be scared anymore.’ Louis looked at him with big, tear-filled eyes, clearly confused. Harry pulled Louis closer to him again. ‘You’ll stay with me, I’ll take care of you, and there’ll be no more reason for you to be afraid.’ 

Louis tried to detach himself from Harry, shaking his head like he was disagreeing with what Harry was saying. ‘I know many people have left you before, but I will not be one of them. I promise. I don’t know what I need to say to make you believe me, but I will try to prove to you every day that I am never abandoning you.’ Tears were streaming down Louis’ cheeks and he was still shaking his head. Harry pulled him into him again, holding him as close as possible. He placed one of his hands on the back of Louis’ head, the other one was spread out over his back. He held Louis close while the hybrid cried, clearly overwhelmed with all that had happened that day. 

He held Louis until the hybrid had tired himself out with his crying. Placing him in bed gently when he was sure the hybrid was asleep. He tucked him in and watched him sleep for a while. Louis looked both peaceful and broken with the bruises marring his face. Harry wondered again what would drive someone to hurt such an innocent creature. Clearly, Louis was a sweetheart that had been hurt way too many times in his life. He swore to himself that he would never let someone hurt him ever again. 

Harry went back to the living room and booted up his laptop, he went back to the site he ordered Louis’ stuff from and added a baby monitor. It had seemed like an unnecessary thing to get at first. But he no longer felt comfortable sleeping when he had no way of keeping an eye on Louis. He read that nightmares could become a regular occurrence once Louis started to work through all the horrors of his past. 

Harry spent a good portion of the night researching hybrids and the consequences of abuse. He was shocked to find out what happened to most hybrids on a daily basis. It was generally known that hybrids were treated very poorly. However, Harry came across pictures and clips that really showed how cruelly most owners treated their hybrids. He read about the lack of legislation that made it easy for owners to abuse their hybrids. And even though the government tried to stop the trafficking and abuse of hybrids by making it harder to get rid of them, this only seemed to increase the abuse. 

Harry clicked on a clip that was posted on an activist’s website, promising to show the horrors of hybrids being used as sex slaves. The video started with showing a hybrid that was laid out on a bed, naked and tied to the bedposts. The hybrid screamed when a man roughly grabbed his tail and tied it to one of the bedposts to keep him spread open. Harry learned that the tail of a hybrid is his most sensitive organ, even more so than in regular animals. They not only used their tail to communicate their emotions, but also to make sense of the world around them and to keep their balance. It was advised to never touch a hybrid’s tail without them asking you to. When the man got out a dildo and tried to shove it inside the hybrid without any prep or protection, Harry’s stomach turned and he closed his laptop before he saw something that would make him hurl. 

He didn’t want to imagine anything like this happening to Louis. Being passed around like a toy was bad enough, Louis was never properly cared for and loved, which could only have left emotional scars. Harry knew that hoping things like he just saw never happened to Louis was unrealistic. It would surely take time for Louis to learn how to trust him, but Harry was convinced that being loved and properly cared for was all Louis really needed. 

Harry checked on Louis one last time before heading to bed himself. He left his bedroom door open so he would hear Louis if he needed him at any point during the night. The images of the abused hybrids he saw haunted him when he closed his eyes, for the first time since adopting Louis he wondered what he had gotten himself into. However, thinking about all the horrible things he saw, he couldn’t find it in himself to regret adopting Louis.


End file.
